March Of Dimes

New York wasn't entirely stripped of cooking talent last weekend, although unconfirmed reports suggested that there was grumbling at the Rainbow Room over the absence of Chef Andre Rene, and that an unaccustomed air of melancholy settled over Le Perigord when diners discovered that Chef Antoine Bouterin had abandoned his stove in favor of the kitchens at San Diego's Sheraton Harbor Island East Hotel.

The American Medical Assn., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the March of Dimes  and seven other groups sent a letter to healthcare professionals Wednesday urging them to counsel pregnant patients to get a seasonal flu shot. The 2010 seasonal flu shot provides protection against the pandemic H1N1 influenza virus as well as two other flu viruses that are expected to be circulating this winter. The letter notes that pregnant women represent only 1% of the U.S. population but account for 5% of all deaths during the swine flu pandemic.

Traffic slowed around Warner Center on Thursday as about 2,500 walkers took to the streets to raise awareness about birth defects. Employees from about 75 businesses participated in the annual Warner Walk, which raises funds for the March of Dimes. The walkers, most in company T-shirts, took off from three spots in Warner Center.

Nearly 1 in 10 of the world's babies is born prematurely, and about 1 million infants die each year as a result of premature birth, according to a report released Sunday by the March of Dimes. The problem is concentrated in poor countries, with the vast majority of the nearly 13 million preemies born each year in Africa and Asia, the report says. Although Africa has the highest rate of premature births, North America isn't far behind. Why? "That's the 13-million-baby question," said March of Dimes epidemiologist Christopher Howson, who headed the project being debated this week at a child health meeting in India.

Scrambling around her parents' Woodland Hills living room, 5-year-old Marissa Shaevel proudly displays her mini-CD player, baby doll and the balloons she took home from the Rose Parade. With a little urging, Marissa explains her mission as the 1996 national ambassador for the March of Dimes: "I make friends and I help children." She serves as the March of Dimes' living testament to the value of infant care.

Alarm clocks set for the crack of dawn, hundreds of corporate leaders stepped into power suits to attend a 7:30 a.m. breakfast sponsored by the Orange County March of Dimes at the Newport Beach Marriott Hotel & Tennis Club. The event raised $90,000 to help underwrite the nonprofit organization's 31st annual WalkAmerica benefit on April 29 at Fashion Island in Newport Beach.

The March of Dimes is soliciting walkers and pledges for its 25th annual WalkAmerica to raise money to fight birth defects. More than 3,500 walkers raised $350,000 by walking the five-mile course through Huntington Beach this year. Organizers of the event hope to assemble 5,000 walkers and raise $500,000 in the 1995 walk, scheduled for April 29.

The March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation will present $1.4 million to the Salk Institute for Biological Studies today, officials said. The money will be used to support Salk's studies and to create a research facility that will allow the institute to expand its research on birth defects, AIDS, brain function and cancer. The donation will be presented in a ceremony this afternoon at the Salk Institute on North Torrey Pines Road.

Westlake High School senior Ganesh Shankar has been selected as the first youth representative to sit on the March of Dimes' board of directors. The 18-year-old will be the youngest person ever to serve on the board in the history of its Southern California chapter, said Executive Director Ken Hickman. Shankar will join about 20 doctors, professors, business executives and other community leaders in making financial and policy decisions at the board's quarterly meetings.

Scrambling around her parents' Woodland Hills living room, 5-year-old Marissa Shaevel proudly displays her mini-CD player, her baby doll and the balloons she took home from the Tournament of Roses parade. She stops long enough to look up at her mother with long-lashed brown eyes and whisper in her ear. With a little urging, Marissa earnestly explains her mission as the 1996 national ambassador for the March of Dimes: "I make friends and I help children." That's just the beginning, really.

Heather Spohr, a Brentwood mother who charmed readers of her blog nationwide as she chronicled her journey with her prematurely born daughter, was among 11,000 who participated in a March of Dimes benefit walk Saturday at Exposition Park to help prevent premature births. The tragic story of baby Madeline Alice Spohr spread across the Internet on April 7 when the sassy, 17-month-old, blue-eyed girl -- the Spohrs' only child -- died unexpectedly after being rushed to the hospital with respiratory problems.

Alarm clocks set for the crack of dawn, hundreds of corporate leaders stepped into power suits to attend a 7:30 a.m. breakfast sponsored by the Orange County March of Dimes at the Newport Beach Marriott Hotel & Tennis Club. The event raised $90,000 to help underwrite the nonprofit organization's 31st annual WalkAmerica benefit on April 29 at Fashion Island in Newport Beach.

Traffic slowed around Warner Center on Thursday as about 2,500 walkers took to the streets to raise awareness about birth defects. Employees from about 75 businesses participated in the annual Warner Walk, which raises funds for the March of Dimes. The walkers, most in company T-shirts, took off from three spots in Warner Center.

Participants in the annual WalkAmerica's Warner Walk for the March of Dimes relished strolling along under a warm spring sun Thursday, giving up their lunch hours to help raise funds for the charity. About 2,500 people participated in the fund-raiser, many of them employees of Warner Center businesses. They clustered in groups, wearing colorful T-shirts representing their employers and chatted amicably during the 1 1/2-mile trek.

Westlake High School senior Ganesh Shankar has been selected as the first youth representative to sit on the March of Dimes' board of directors. The 18-year-old will be the youngest person ever to serve on the board in the history of its Southern California chapter, said Executive Director Ken Hickman. Shankar will join about 20 doctors, professors, business executives and other community leaders in making financial and policy decisions at the board's quarterly meetings.

Three leading nonprofit organizations are getting a combined total of $2 million to plug Florida citrus products though other foods are equally healthful, raising questions about charities' growing role as paid endorsers. In a series of new commercials funded by the Florida citrus industry, the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Assn. and the March of Dimes tout the benefits of Florida oranges and grapefruit--in the broadest such alliance yet between charities and business.

Scrambling around her parents' Woodland Hills living room, 5-year-old Marissa Shaevel proudly displays her mini-CD player, her baby doll and the balloons she took home from the Tournament of Roses parade. She stops long enough to look up at her mother with long-lashed brown eyes and whisper in her ear. With a little urging, Marissa earnestly explains her mission as the 1996 national ambassador for the March of Dimes: "I make friends and I help children." That's just the beginning, really.